Review: Pilot Iroshizuku Take-sumi

This was my first Pilot Iroshizuku ink. I got it back in late 2015. And I then thought I reviewed it not long after I got it. Then I thought I did so the last time I discovered that I hadn’t, but no. So: third is the charm?

It was my third bottle of ink. My two first ones was Lamy Black(I think I used it for a week before I got rid of it) and Noodler’s Bernanke Black. The Bernanke was a ink I chose because of its short dry time. And it is amazing. But the Take-sumi is not far behind, and has a few other things going for it.

I think something like the Bernanke is good as your first ink, if you are worried about dry time, and then go for something with longer dry time later. The Take-sumi’s colour is backer than the other black inks I have tried, but it isn’t the blackest black you can find. But it looks good with thinner and broader nibs.

This was also the ink that got me into thinking about finding the perfect compromises between colour, dry time and writing experience. And this is one out of two black inks I can recommend to anyone without any hesitation.